Carleton Adventures

This is the final installment of the Honeymoon Adventures. I appreciate the WWPD shoutout and comment from fashion blog star (pun intended) regarding my vacation wear, because I had fun with it and perhaps put forth more effort than usual. Food is always a good thing to document, as well. But here is another perspective that should not go untold.

"Are we there yet?"


"We'll guard the Travelodge room."


On the way to New Buffalo.


"It's raining."


"..."


"It's sunny."


An entire extra bed for the Poppersteins & Memu!


"A penguin, like me! I'm cuter."

If we took a plane to Detroit and I took all the Poppersteins, I'm absolutely certain TSA would dismember all of them to see if I'm transporting drugs. Thankfully, you can take as many bags as you want and put whatever you want in them when you're just driving across state lines.

New Buffalo Adventures

Down to the second to last installation of the Honeymoon Series. We arrived at the Marina Grand Resort later than we thought due to the rain, but just in time for check in. The weather was clear when we arrived, but hot and humid the whole time we were there, probably thanks to the passing rain. Here I am in the lobby. I think there was a wedding on the rooftop, and that someone left their Sprite on the log table next to me. Those are paintings of sweaters hanging on the wall, but that is a real dead tree behind me.

What would you do if you encountered this in a hotel lobby?

The Marina Grand website says that their interiors are inspired by Scandinavian and modern designs. We stayed in this room because there was nothing else available at the time we made reservations, so there was a whole bed for the Poppersteins (yes, you read that correctly). Indeed, everything is slick, but I wonder how long the chicness will last. I feel like it'll look really outdated in ten years. Anyway, it was a great room after spending two nights in a Travelodge room.

From top left, clockwise: goat cheese in marinara sauce with flatbread; my xoxoCILANTROxoxo and walnut pesto white(?)fish; Mordecai's salmon and mediocre mashed sweet potato; thick-ass lemon tart.

We ate at Bentwood Tavern, the restaurant connected to the resort. We were drinking beers when I heard someone talking about their seats being too close to the doors. The voice sounded incredibly familiar, even nostalgic. When I looked up, I saw none other than my sixth grade teacher, Ms. Ranalli! Who is no longer, but has a hyphenated name, I think. Anyway, yes, Ms. Ranalli as in the daughter of Ranalli's Pizza. She was vacationing with her family, and I got to see her kids. To this day, I think of her when I recall how I learned to write an expository essay, how I learned about ancient Greek cultures, and how kids can be cruel to teachers. BTW, she looked no different from her 1996 days. Amazing!

At night we took rented bicycles and rode to the beach nearby. It was both frightening and exhilarating at once. When we returned them, there was a fireworks show across the "harbor" right next to our room. Our view outside the windows basically looked like Diversey or Belmont harbor--a shit ton of docked boats.

When researching this general area, I came across a restaurant called Brewster's Italian Cafe. This excited me to no end. To me, Brewster is the pigeon in Animal Crossing who runs The Roost cafe below the museum. Brewster makes a good cup of coffee, and sometimes he puts a little pigeon milk in it. He doesn't like it when you let your coffee cool. Usually he's tight-lipped, but if you visit him frequently, he begins to open up. This is when your heart melts. Anyway, I was looking forward to this visit very much, which occurred the next day, regardless of how the food was. I have to say, I don't recall it being very memorable, and the portions were huge. But more importantly...BREWSTER'S CAFE!!!

We were going to the Warren State Dunes, but so was everyone else in the surrounding area. So we kept driving along whatever road we were on, and we came across CAPTAIN MIKE'S FUN PARK! Wow, what a creative name. But who is Captain Mike? I think his mom was running everything that day. It turned out to be quite entertaining. We took advantage of the batting cages, go-carts, and game room. In the extremely hot and humid game room, I won enough tickets for a childish bracelet, cheap plastic rings, and a deck of playing cards. The go-carts were awesome because I found $11 sitting by the brakes in my car. I stuck the money under my foot in my sandal, drove around the track as instructed, and took it out when I felt we were far enough away from the tracks. Hehe.

We then went to some smaller dunes that turned out to be exciting as well. We climbed the boardwalk thingie, and the view was nice, but a little smokey. I remember exchanging a few words with Mordecai about this, and we told ourselves it was someone's barbecue, specifically, CORN. It turned out to be a full fledged FIRE IN THE DUNES! The fire kept spreading, but it got boring so we started to play catch. Mordecai showed me how to properly grip a baseball to throw it. On top of running around, throwing and catching the ball, it was so hot, I thought I was going to melt.

We didn't start the fire...maybe the guy posing in the Speedo above my shoulder did.

For dinner, we went to Timothy's at Gordon Beach Inn.

Conch fritters; cheddar mashed potato; a bunch of stuff, including chipotle sauce and mango over red snapper; a bunch of stuff, including berries, over...some other kind of fish.

We were originally going to stay at Gordon Beach Inn, where Timothy's is located, until we read reviews online about how the building was old, the walls thin, and the noise from Timothy's prevents anyone from being happy. I then discovered the Marina Grand online, and we jumped ship. But we heard good things about Timothy's, and I was curious about Gordon Beach Inn, so we went for dinner. Let's just say I preferred our room at the Marina Grand. The food was good, except that there was so much going on in the entrees. I think they strive for a wide range of fresh ingredients, but they also try to put every ingredient on earth into your dish, which only amounts to not a whole lot. But the cheddar mashed potatoes were ON POINT.

We left around noon the next day. Chicago is not too far away, so the drive wasn't bad. Before leaving, we had some burgers somewhere nearby, and I saw this motorcycle in the parking lot. It was hard to take a picture of it because of the sparkles, but it was a most awesome bike. Sometimes Oji looks like that, except he's not snarling; his teeth just get caught in his lip. I thought of those three-wolves-and-moon shirt that got popular for a minute, but concluded that this bike is so much better than all those shirts and Amazon reviews/stories online combined.

Detroit Adventures

In addition to the Twins vs. Tigers game, we had some other adventures in Detroit. I loved Detroit and its surrounding suburbs and would go back any time in a heartbeat.

But I'll think twice about staying at Travelodge again. I appreciate their service because it's good, but I do not appreciate the stench of low-grade bathroom cleaner permeating the entire rented space. Also, the floor plan of this room and the motel rooms in "No Country For Old Men" are eerily similar. The only thing missing was a vent above the bathroom door where I could stuff a suitcase full of drug money and a detector thingie.

Mordecai is always searching for weird buildings and structures, and I knew we were not going to drive away from Detroit without looking at something that was not the GM headquarters building in downtown Detroit.

Apparently there is a townhouse complex designed by Mies van der Rohe in central Detroit. To get to it, we drove around some completely tore up neighborhood, spotted two tall Mies-esque condo buildings, and then noticed that there were some low, modern townhouses tucked away nearby that had "BY MIES VAN DER ROHE!!!" written all over them. I noticed the little playground that also looked like it was designed by Mies. Very simple, straightforward, and functional, if Mies' idea of having fun on bars was training to train like an Olympic gymnast. I definitely hurt myself climbing those bars. I need to stop pretending like I can still do tricks from grade school days.

After lunch at The Detroiter Bar, we searched baseball card shops and came up with Collectible Investments in none other than Royal Oaks, which is where we were staying.

I'd say the store had more toys and Yu-gi-oh-type things than sports-related stuff, but I walked away with a few things I couldn't get in Chicago very easily. Mordecai got some box of old cards that wasn't worth whatever he paid, but I think he was content nonetheless.

For Joe:

EOJ LIVES IN ROYAL OAKS, MICHIGAN!

We almost settled for a chain restaurant for coffee but came across the gem that is the Donut Cutter, not too far from Collectible Investments. I think it is a family-run establishment, and the interior looks like it's stuck in the late 80's, early 90's. I'm pretty sure that this is what Dunkin Donuts used to look like. The girl running the register and the other customers all knew each other by name and what was going on, generally, in each others' lives.

I had what I guess is the old fashioned donut, and Mordecai had a glazed donut. They were both good, but the glazed donut was fluffy and chewy and it made me regret my choice. I think I just like to eat what others are eating, but I swear, if there were such a thing as a donut-cloud, it'd be a glazed donut from the Donut Cutter in Royal Oaks!

Then we went to the game and it was awesome. Did I mention we went to the game and it was awesome?

The next day, it was pouring. But we escaped the storms by heading out west towards New Buffalo, Michigan, for our next destination. Along the way, we stopped at Big Boy.

When my parents went to get Oji, they stopped at a Big Boy and my mom bought the Big Boy figurine for me. So I felt kind of obligated to check it out. I had no idea it was an actual diner; I thought it was more like a McDonald's type of fast food restaurant. It was OK--I'd stop again for the novelty factor.

Took my pancakes with me on the road for some reason. Do you like my busted umbrella?

And then we were on our way to New Buffalo, where sun, heat, and humidity were waiting for us.

To be continued!

On Our Way, Continued

• Re-cap of the Detroit Tigers portion of our honeymoon here.
• The photo above is from the resort portion of our honeymoon. There is much to blog about, mostly regarding events, clothes, and...Carleton Popperstein. TBC.
  
• I got these shoes at Payless today. They are apparently only available at certain Payless locations (in Chicago: Lincolnwood, Woodfield, Old Orchard, State Street, Michigan Avenue). I thought they'd be a part of the timeless Halford Collection, but Mordecai informs me that they're a part of the not-so-classic Cenobite Collection.
  
• Summer is coming to an end. It's all downhill from here! Quick, paint your nails a coral orangish color now while it's still acceptable, before people think you're a Halloween nut.
  

Hitched

So Mordecai and I got married a couple weekends ago. It was a fun and happy day, and I didn't feel too rushed or like things got too hectic. I was thinking that our wedding was good because it wasn't all about us being in the limelight, but more about the people who matter to us most and being able to have them all in one place. I thought I had an important thought there in my head, but then in Michigan (more on that for another post), I saw some of former Playmate Kendra Wilkinson's reality TV show and she said the exact same thing of her wedding. So much for my momentous thought of the day! Or perhaps I underestimate Kendra? In any case, I recommend enjoying your wedding if you have one, because there will probably never be such a happy occasion where so many good people convene in one place.

I have only a few pictures of my own of this day, so here is a recap of the wedding day from my perspective.

Mai and I got our hair did at Salon Moka, where I got my highlights. I have no idea how Masa-san got my hair to cooperate, but he made me look like an enka singer. I never felt so Japanese as I did on this day.

Masa-san and I match! Purple power.

From the time I got my hair did to the time I arrived at the venue, I felt like I was in Japan. My mom, grandma, Mai, and her mother all helped me get ready, so the only language spoken was Japanese; my grandma made rice balls, pickled vegetables, and had fruit on the table; Mai and her mother smoked Pianissimo cigarettes; and there was a lot of bowing once the woman who dressed me in my kimono finished her fine work. I thought I wouldn't be able to breathe with the obi, but I was totally able to move and even wiggle in my kimono. This is a testament to how well Ishikawa Sensei wrapped me up. I ended up wearing my kimono longer than I anticipated, and even ate some dinner in it.

Schedule-wise, everything went perfectly. Even this horrible traffic wasn't a problem. I sat in the front of the car and waved to a few people who realized that there was an oddly dressed lady in the CR-V next to them. Notice the mole on my face; very Ishikawa Sayuri-like, in my opinion.

The following is the only picture I have of the actual wedding. You'd think it might be of me and Mordecai, but there must be millions of those photos. Mordecai has three awesome cousins, and they all graciously flew out. Here I am with Sarah, who is also a newly wed.

Sarah! This picture is like the inversion of this one.

After dinner, I made a quick wardrobe change into a white Betsey Johnson dress. I forgot to wear my mom's pearls. I also forgot to eat the cake except for the morsel that Mordecai fed me. Mordecai saved some macaroons for me, and there were plenty of "Hotoda" cocktails (merely cranberry juice, oranage juice, vodka) consumed, so I was all good. I believe I acted a bit giddy, perhaps overly so, at various moments for the rest of the evening, but I'm told it seemed to be a combination of "Hotoda" cocktails and happiness. I guess that's forgivable. Oh, and my grandma danced! Haha.

Here are our cake toppers. Our cake provider, Mont Blanc Pastry (Arlington Heights), had only one penguin left, so we asked for, as the pastry chef said, "wan-chan," (translation: maybe "woofie"?), or the dog. Here is Sam's excellent recreation of the toppers.

Mordecai and I dropped his parents and sister off at the hotel, and my mom had taken my grandma, Mai, and her mom home. When Mordecai and I got back to our apartment, Mai and her mom had just arrived moments earlier, WITH MCDONALD'S!!! I had not been able to eat a whole lot at the wedding, so this was the most perfect way to cap off the night. Big Mac, fries, McDonald's Coke (somehow superior to other forms of Coke). Some may think that catered, gourmet food should trump Mickey D's, but first of all, that's just wrong (which isn't to say that McDonald's is better than gourmet food, either) and second, why not have both if you can?

Our caterers, John Moorehouse and staff, noticed that when Mai and I went up to get macaroons at the wedding after I changed, only three cassis and three green tea ones remained. The following Monday, my dad saw John, who gave my dad a little bag of two of each macaroon type for me! Oh-to-the-em-gee. The other flavors were raspberry and chocolate, which were the flavors of mousse in our cake.

I could not have asked for better weather, food, desserts, drinks, music, and above all, people, on that fine Saturday. Thank you to everyone who came and made the day as awesome as it was!

On our way

Updates to look out for:

• Wedding!
• Honeymoon Adventures, Part I in Detroit
  
• Honeymoon Adventures, Part II in southwest Michigan
  
• AIC's new modern wing, and late response to what we look for in art museums

New camera cord needs to be found, and photos need to be organized.

Irritable Planning Syndrom

I may sound bitter, but I like to think that I'm just telling it like it is.

• From a to-do calendar on wedding planning, this one line irritates me to no end, such that I've stopped looking at this calendar for advice. What reason do Martha Stewart editors have for putting the song in this line? Why would they think this reason is a good one?
  

• There is some video going around on YouTube that has gathered over 2 million hits, in which an entire wedding party goes down the procession while dancing to Chris Brown's "Forever." I'm not sure why I even sat through two minutes of the video, and I refuse to link to it here. I know I sound like a pure hater, but I have legit reasons for being critical. First of all, I'm offended by the song/artist choice. Second, Cedric the Entertainer came up with this idea, but in a much better form, in "Kings of Comedy." (Or as Steve Harvey says, "Kangs of Comedy.") See the first minute or so of this clip, and more if you wish to have a good laugh:
  

He does it better than that entire train of rhythmically challenged people BY HIMSELF.

I think I could watch the Kangs over and over and over again, knowing what jokes and lines are coming up, and I'd still never get sick of them.

I'm the press conference, you a conversation

I hear that these Yahoo! streams are counted towards songs' chart position in Billboard, so I feel it is my duty, as a member of her official fan club Honey B. Fly, to post this on my blog. "This" being the video for Mariah Carey's latest single, "Obsessed," from her upcoming album "Memoirs of an Imperfect Angel" due at the end of August. I can never remember whose memoirs they are and I'd prefer that they were those of an imperfect angle, but whatever. She looks good and happy as her music continues to, let's just say, evolve. I would like to see her get her 19th #1 single and destroy the silly Beatles' record in her lifetime and in mine, so...CHECK OUT "OBSESSED" BELOW!

New Whole Foods

My grandma arrived from Japan last Wednesday. After unloading all sorts of goods from her suitcase, my mom and I took her to the new, giantest-in-America Whole Foods on North Avenue to have, of all things, udon (highly recommended). My dad works around this area and is deeply impressed by the selection of cars one sees in their parking lot. He also heard on the radio that despite the recession, the marketing folks have done their research on the surrounding area and guarantee that this one will profit. This is clearly the King of all Whole Foods, one of the most unnecessarily extravagant groceries in the West.

Here is my mom (holding leftover udon) pointing at the giant Lexus SUV that parked recklessly next to us.

There is a cafe near the entrance that serves coffee and the like until 7PM. After that, it turns into a bar. Mordecai and I went later at night to return the Chocolate Chewies that I bought earlier that were far from chewy. We were surprised to see two HDTVs featuring none other than the Mets game and the Sox game. The bar and the surrounding area were pretty busy well into the evening while we were there watching the Mets lose to the Dodgers (probably--I can't really remember).

A nice view of the sky from the bar.

Here I am mingling in the snack section with what I imagine are the rich folk. I am sporting my new Outdoor backpack and my $5 pants from Target. Outdoor products are weird--the company seems to be American, but they only make camping-type products here. In Japan, they make awesome, colorful, patterned products that are obviously not made for camping or the outdoor. I got the "honeycomb" pattern in blue and purple. I love how the thin and weak straps are obviously not made for camping or carrying too many items, like...books.

Memorial Day

Today I met with Mordecai for lunch even though I wanted to stay at home and watch the Michael Jackson memorial on TV. But I couldn't find a listing for it on non-cable TV so I just brought my laptop with me. We ate at Little Branch Cafe, which is tucked amongst those insane and seemingly abandoned high-rise condo buildings near Soldier Field and the Museum Campus. That area of the South Loop is so weird.

On the way back to the more normal part of the South Loop, we stopped by the giant sculptures by Magdalena Abakanowicz. They've been around for a while now I think, but I've never seen them up close; they're kind of creepy. I've seen some of her work at Northwestern's art gallery, and I think her work is often about World War II, which means I probably shouldn't be making a face at the sculpture's crotch in my face, but it was right there.

I spent the rest of the day watching MJ's memorial on and off and trying to read Marxist literature on a computer screen. I can't believe Paris Jackson spoke at the memorial at the end; it's bad enough to see young children crying almost hysterically in public because they've lost their legendary father in an untimely fashion, but what's even sadder is that as the day went on, I wondered, "Did Joe Jackson feed her those lines? Was that scripted?" But Aunt Janet was on standby, so I felt a little reassured (BTW, where was Uncle-To-Be-Someday Jermaine Dupri?). I have to say, as inappropriate as this comment may be, I loved how Paris turned around at the end of her goodbye and just bawled into Aunt Janet's plentiful bosom.

In lighter news, my mom made Fourth of July jello. She's been experimenting with all kinds of jello for the past few years. This past weekend, she made this maki-style kind of strawberry jello. The lighter layer was made with marshmallow, so it was a little soft and chewy. Here is my mom demonstrating one possible way of consuming the roly-poly jello. I am reminded of Fruit-By-The-Foot fruit snacks.

Print Is Not Dead

Tonight we went to Andy and Melinda's new place. We ate and talked baseball, and to everybody's amusement, Andy passed out at 10PM. I heard Michael Jackson songs coming from the living room, so we concluded the housewarming party with Michael Jackson videos. I can't believe I had never seen the entire video for "Smooth Criminal" until tonight! Wuuut. Yet another video that I think trumps "Thriller." But if I ever get a dog, I think I'd like to name it "Thriller."

Before we went home, we dropped by a 7-11 for a Hawaiian Punch Slurpee. Before even entering, I saw Fabolous on the cover of a magazine and made a beeline for it. It was XXL's "Hip Hop Soul" issue, and he shares the cover with The-Dream, who is apparently largely responsible for Mariah Carey's upcoming album and lead-off single, "Obsessed." The magazine was a must-buy. Anyway, LOSO LIVES! I had seen signs of a pulse elsewhere; I guess he has an album coming out shortly.

I'd also like to highlight my Kelly Taylor-esque dress, by a designer named Tracy Feith for Target. It has neon-orange stitching and the bubble hem, which I've loved since the late 90's, early 2000's, when I first saw it in Japan in Cutie magazines. I'd have worn it with Doc Martens to keep the 90's vibe going with the jean jacket (Pikachu on collar), but I like wearing Fryes in the summer. I highly recommend floral dresses in the summer. Next up on my summer-wardrobe-wanty list: a good linen blazer.

Thursday as Friday

I found out yesterday that I don't have to go in for my part-time job tomorrow (scanning barcodes at the Regenstein [again] three times a week). This was a pleasant surprise. Today felt like Friday.

Today's Discoveries

Mushroom hill on Whipple Street

Just something I came across today while walking to the train station after taking Oji out. I thought it was cute.

Jorge Cantu in Spanish ESPN

I screamed out loud when I saw my bench star, Jorge Cantu, on TV at a bar for the first time. I enjoy seeing my non-White Sox Fantasy players on TV. Nar then laughed out loud and yelled "SHOT GUN TO THE FACE," referring to Cantu's Robert Redford-like complexion. I don't think Nar thought of it so positively, but I think Cantu also has a bit of a Redford-like gleam to his eyes. You may think I'm in baseball love, but I maintain that I only find Robert Redford objectively handsome, as in I find him handsome but not the kind that I have an interest in. I feel the same about Brad Pitt and Alain Delon--I see causes for infatuation by others but am not infatuated myself. Also, while Cantu is a fine baseball player in reality, he's been more or less bench material for the past couple of months. That does not warrant true baseball love.

Today's Revisit to the Past

Oscar Mayer Elementary's Field: 12 Years Later

In seventh grade, I played softball. At Oscar Mayer's field, I hit a homerun to centerish-right-ish field. I don't really remember anything else about softball except once I was playing first base, and OMG it was so stressful! I was like, traumatized. Anyway Mordecai and I had some time to kill before seeing "Public Enemies," so we walked around and I revisited the spring of 1997 here with my non-baseball outfit and shoes, and an Elle magazine for a bat.

Pack Wars

Last weekend Joe, Mordecai and I went to the Bunny Hutch for a baseball card event. The event involved miniature golf, batting cages, and pack wars, which I can best describe as something like sports card bingo. Lots of sun, heat, raffles, giveaways...AND SOUTHPAW!!!

I asked for a photo and then asked about how he/it distracts opposing pitchers by doing dances behind home plate in the first row. Then he/it did some dances for me and signed a magnet for me.

This is John of Elite Sportscards and Comics. He is our go-to man when it comes to baseball cards. He is our Baseball Card Uncle.

Bad News

Today Mordecai and I went to apply for a marriage license but left with our tails between our legs. One of us has not been driving or walking around with a driver's license since returning from New York/Pennsylvania. So we will return next week, and hopefully we will prevail.

Mordecai had to go back to work so I went to Chipotle for lunch. I ate an entire vegetarian burrito. On the way back home on the train, I was drifting in and out of sleep. I was totally owned by the burrito. I got back home, gave my tired feet a sea salt bath, and then fell asleep in the living room. I woke up once to move to the bedroom and slept some more. Mordecai apparently called me 10 times to see where I was since I didn't tell him my afternoon plans. So I wake up to Mordecai saying to me, "I called you a bunch of times, like within the past hour, I sent an email too" followed by "Michael Jackson died." I felt even more disgruntled than I normally am after waking up from a nap. I think Mordecai had thought I died with the news of Michael's death.

I saw that my Facebook and Twitter feeds were flooded with reports of Michael in a coma, rumors and then confirmation of his death, comments about Michael's scandalous ways, and lots of "R.I.P. Michael Jackson." I liked former LLA classmate Jhared's comments: "Take Tito! Take Tiiiiito!" and "Honestly...Mike died a long time ago. If you're real with yourself you know what I'm talking about." On the one hand, I was hopeful for at least one more good album and I really really really wanted to see him live. But I also had a feeling that it was all over anyway, that the concert in London was going to be a farewell concert, and possibly a sad one since he probably couldn't sing and dance like he used to.

A few years back, Mordecai and I were watching an MTV "Best Dancer" countdown, and we were sure that Michael would be number 1. Who could be better? But we were apalled to see Michael ranked at number 2. Guess who was number 1: CHRIS BROWN. Yes, CHRIS "WHEN WE GET HOME, I'MMA KILL YOU RIHANNA" BROWN. I mean, we didn't know him as such then, but that countdown was just a disgrace, lies, fallacies, real real messed up. I think of Michael Jackson as possessed when he sings and dances, like his mind is in another world when he performs. And I don't have a "theory" that explains my gut feeling, and I'm not interested in one, but I think that the scandals in his life are almost excusable given his talent. Maybe "excusable" is not the right word; perhaps "irrelevant" is better. To me, his life off stage was just not as interesting as his performances on stage! Maybe I'm not thinking right with the heat and all, but there are lots of people who do shady shit with children and lead tumultuous personal lives. But who could sing and dance and influence people like Michael? NO ONE. Today, Michael Jackson returned to his home planet.

Wedding Weekend!

This past weekend, Mordecai and I attended two weddings. On Friday, we went to Sarah and Matt's wedding in Lewisburg, Pennsylvania.

Mordecai's parents drove us back east and we flew back on Saturday from Newark. On Sunday, we went to Jade and Raj's wedding at the Harold Washington Library in Chicago.

Congrats to Sarah & Matt, Jade & Raj!!! Wedding season is a lot of fun.

Sunday: Lookin' Good, Feelin' Good

On Sunday, Mordecai and I went to Michigan Avenue to run some errands. We've been down here every weekend for the past couple of weeks. I especially like the little area right around the John Hancock building, because there are lots of rich little old ladies with small dogs who wear these "I don't give a fuck" outfits--like in the winter, it'll be fur coats and sneakers. These ladies above on the left, however, most certainly gave a fuck when they got dressed in the morning. What was even more awesome was that the woman on the left representing the primary colors had a Forever 21 shopping bag.

I don't know what kind of outfit it is that I concocted when I got dressed yesterday, but I wanted to pair my Frye boots with shorts because all the Japanese girls in the girly magazines do it. I also busted out my Nodame shirt, which I got last summer at this York store that provided the wardrobe for the Nodame Cantabile live action drama series. It's funny, the minute it starts to warm up, I completely forgive and forget about Chicago's fierce winters. Bring on the heat!

Saturday: Won an Authentic Alfonso Soriano Jersey

At least I think it's the authentic one. On Saturday, Mordecai, Joe and I dropped by Elite Sports Card & Comics on Montrose by Damen to see if any of us won a raffle/sweepstakes contest we had automatically entered by buying boxes of Topps Series 2 cards a few weeks ago. For every X number of packs you purchase (I forget how many, we aren't at this Little League level), you get to enter Y number of raffle tickets, and for every hobby box or jumbo box you purchase, you get to enter Y + more raffle tickets. Since Mordecai and I got a hobby and jumbo (Big Leagues), we entered a lot of tickets. The owner, John had the tickets and corresponding prizes listed on a sheet of paper. A 5 year old won an autographed Kerry Wood photograph, and a 74 year old man won some stickers of something unknown. I WON FIRST PRIZE, AN AUTHENTIC ALFONSO SORIANO JERSEY (MEDIUM).

I waltzed into Elite with my new White Sox jacket, too. This just adds to the long history I have with the Cubs, where it seems like I should be a solid Cubs fan. I've written this elsewhere, but I'll say it again: I spent a large portion of my childhood/adolescence half a block from Wrigley Field at my grandma's; I went to a day care with Shawn Dunston's daughters; I went to many Cubs games with said day care; I have met Ernie Banks and have a personlized autograph from him; many of my friends and classmates are Cubs fans; I have met Koyie Hill and have a personlized autograph from him; and now, I win this jersey. The other jerseys that are going to be up for prizes in the next rounds are the Phillie's and Joe's favorite, Chase Utley and the Giant's and Joe's other favorite/Filipino brother, Tim Lincecum. I would've preferred Lincecum because he's on my fantasy team, but I guess it's fitting for me to win a Cubs jersey. At least I don't think lowly of Soriano. His face looks a little skull-ish to me, but I like him fine, and would prefer his jersey over that of other "Cubbies," save for maybe Ryan Dempster because he's also on my fantasy team. This jersey will probably not be worn, but I will hang it and take care of it with tons of pride and gratitude for Elite and John.

Upon careful inspection (Mordecai happened to capture the moment, even though the photo is a little out of focus), I noticed the giant Cubs logo on the front that is bigger than my face is made to look like it's sewn on. The little black zig-zags are merely printed instead of being actual thread. I'm not sure of the details of an authentic jersey, but I really hope the actual "Cubbies" aren't running around with the same patch, because that'd be sad and lame, much like reported crappy facilities in Wrigley Field.

In closing, I want to say that I thought maybe this was a sign that I should "transcend team loyalties" like one of UIC's finest, Prof. Jon Jarrett, who specializes in the foundations of quantum mechanics (or something like that). I only talk to him about baseball (never took physics in my life), and he once told me to email him a list of my favorite players because he collects cards. My email ended up being this long-winded explanation of liking Japanese players, the White Sox over the Cubs, and now a growing, fuzzy love for the Tigers, and how fantasy is just fueling me into overdrive. I ran into him the next day by the mailboxes, and I said hi, and he looked at me and started laughing. In the email, I had asked him about this mysterious "transcending team loyalties" thing. Since all I got in response so far is laughter, I'm still kind of lost in fantasy/personal biases, not knowing exactly how to feel about this Soriano jersey as a Soriano jersey, versus as a prize from Elite and John. If he ever writes back or clarifies the "ascent" or what the Land Beyond is like, I'll certainly update here or on the Marauders of Time blog or Third Base or Bust. Maybe I'll just have to straight up interview him.